Cuiv, Thanks for the tutorial! I picked up on something tonight. I have used almost every feature on my pro and my plus, but I did not know that you could tap and hold to re-center an image. Just for that this was well worth watching! Now all I need is our inversion to clear up and I'm going to try it out. Thanks again!
Cuive, you've become the most active astrophotography channel which is something RU-vid is lacking, thanks for all the ASIAir tutorials, I got one a few months ago but haven't used it at night yet, it looking easier than a laptop so far.
* This video was recorded a few weeks ago! The live stacking feature is really robust, and I love how it really opens up the equipment to a whole different part of the hobby (EAA), and makes it rival things like the eVScope (I have an upcoming video about how to build your own eVscope step by step coming very soon! :D)
To bring up more questions. Do you have experience with sharpcap and livestacking on a computer? The ASIAir feels likr very convenient. But the sharpcap computer combination looks so much more felixible. Whats is your opinion. Thx for the great videos of yours.
Amazing! Excellent video (as always!) - Yes, I know it's 2 years old 😄Still...I enjoyed it, and I didn't realize that The ASIAir could do so much! The latest version must be incredible! An ASIAir is the "last piece of the puzzle" for me - Then, I'll be able to (finally) do some imaging... Clear Skies!
Thank you Cuiv! I'm just learning how to use my new ASIAir Plus, and this video is a huge help! Very clear and understandable - and your enthusiasm is infectious! Clear Skies!
Another nice video Cuiv! I can only do attended sessions, so I always take my lights using live stack with the save every frame checkbox ticked. But I never bother with the live stack's dark, flats and bias features. They don't make a big difference for EAA with a well behaved camera like a 533MC, and unfortunately the air wont save every frame (that checkbox just enables the feature for lights). So I always take my calibration frames in plan mode (at the end of the session) so that I have raw frames for post processing the next day. But I really don't miss them in the live stack EAA view either. The histogram tweak gives a pleasing enough view, and by the third frame I always have a huge stupid grin on my face. The air has a pretty cool video stack for planets as well now. Brilliant for outreach.
Great video, Cuiv! As usual. Just one thing that you didn't mention in your video, which can be interesting. The ASIAir also allows you to import your own calibration frames (using a usb thumb drive, for example), so you can generate these in your software of choice (or reuse calibration frames from your library), save them as .fit and use them for the live stacking. This would probably be a good way to get around the small issue you mentioned, of flat frames that aren't fully calibrated.
hej Cuiv, thank you for this one!!! as someone who does 95% EAA, i have been waiting for someone to show the ASILive workflow with ASIAir+ (still waiting for mine, currently using laptop with ASILive for Mac) but without spending an hour talking about their dinner/girlfriend/etc. this was a great length, even with the excursion into bias & flats (even with an ASI294mc (uncooled) i don't ever bother). as a subscriber i understand where you're coming from, but i'd suggest instead of thinking of EAA as "low-cal astrophotography", most of us think of it as "visual on steroids", or "visual without pretending we still live in the 1800s"... ;)
Amazing! The Lazy Geek deliver always! Very helpful for a beginner like me struggling a bit to try out different thing with my setup using AsiAir plus 😍
This was so much fun Cuiv. You just showed me a way to use my ASIAir Plus to show my wife and kids the live views. I knew it was an option but you walking me through it makes me bold enough to just do it now. Great stuff man!
Cuiv, Fantastic workflow with the Plus. For many of us here in the U.S., our shipment of the ASIAIR Plus are unfortunately bottlenecked at our ports. I’m guessing it will be winter before they arrive, but in the meantime your videos are helping to get us up to speed for when they arrive. It would help me if you could slow down a bit and show us more carefully what icons need to be pressed, etc. Thank you again for your ongoing entertaining and informative videos. And thank you for your enthusiasm!!!
Thanks for the feedback Joseph! It's really hard on a tablet to properly show where to tap, without highlighting everything in editing (which is then a huge amount of work). I do have the tap feedback on, but I'll try to do better next time :)
I am not doing Astronomy, but EAA so viewing live, don’t need dark frames, bias frames, etc. only need them for astrophotography and want to save your photos. Stellina and ev scope only stack without darks, etc and get good results
Yeah I was trying to enter the live stream at just the correct time, but Shawn's software only allowed up to 6 participants, so it wouldn't let me in....
This was really fun to watch. I truly enjoy EAA. I have the plus ordered. It’s nice to see alternative uses for it. This would be excellent for guests viewing. Cheers.
@@martynh5410 with immediacy I love it. For solar system it’s a bit lacking. No ROI support at the moment. You can set the crop to 640x480 etc. however. For deep sky it’s awesome. Keeps me indoors with no laptop outside. Not near as far as advertised but it works.
@@martynh5410 roughly 30’. That’s to a screen porch. If I’m the same distance behind my exterior house wall I can forget it. Even a window is troublesome. I put it in station mode and get a little more stable connection depending on what I’m demanding of it.
Although I’m quite familiar with the ASIAIR it would be beneficial if you could highlight the buttons used. Have had a hard time to keep track with your swipes sometimes. Other then that: great and useful content 👍🏻
If you shoot your calibration frames, then create the masters in Pixinsight or whatever program you choose, then reload them to the ASIAIR as .FIT, you should be able to live stack with the masters. I would recommend saving all light frames however, in case something goes wrong.
I’m just started on astrophotography. I’m so new I haven’t taken any images yet. I’m still collecting equipment after purchasing my Celestron C8 with AVX mount. I just purchased an ASIAir 256g and a ASI585MC. I know it’s not the best scope for DSO. I wonder if Live Stack feature can be used for the larger planets? I still have to figure out the software side of astrophotography. I don’t have a PC, just a Mac so I have downloaded ASI Studio, Seril and looking at Astap. If I’m not successful with these programs I will probably purchase a PC laptop to try Windows only program. But now I can try the Live Stack and learn the imaging programs later.
Hi Cuiv! A lazy geek here from Argentina, thanks for all your content! Is perfect! Now, I believe prima luce lab release today the "PLAY" software to compete with other similar software! So... i will wait for you to test it!!! Again, thank you very much!
ASI Live is installed with a ZWO camera. I use it for now and get good results. I do go back and restack. but it is really nice for star parties to watch a target light up.
I think live stacking is a good way to view your progress so you can make changes if needed. I don't think I would use calibration frames though, cause they aren't calculated via your lights. It may produce negative results.
Very nice and very useful video. I too recently started using asiair in live stacking mode. I didn't understand one thing, did you use the auto guide or not?
Thanks so much Cuiv. I have undertaken to conduct a live outreach event post-COVID (grin!) and what you have demonstrated here excites me enormously. Could you please ‘streamline’ a demo to show what can be achieved without my keeping all the old folks (grin again) waiting unnecessarily in the cold and dark?
Nice demonstration. Now you are going to have to go back and modify or annotate your 7 things I wish ASIAIR + would do and make it a 6 things You wish it would do. Just an overlay in that with a screen pop showing the update video and in the notes section. Just to be fair to them. Who knows, you may be encouraging one of their engineers to work on the other 6!
Using ASIAIR PLUS, under Mount Settings, there is a GO TO CENTER POSITION, then under that a setting, CENTER EXPO TIME. What is the purpose of the CENTER EXPO(sure) TIME?? Thanks very much.
Very cool Cuiv. I had one of the best outreaches using the ASIAir and hyperstar last month. I was just blasting though objects and people were really impressed at what is up there. ZWO is getting better with adding some other brands but they still have ways to go. - Cheers Kurt
Great Video Cuiv! I use the ASi Live on Windows with Darks and Flats to live stack all the time when i want to show the family what is out there, or when im getting a target ready for the night. Its GREAT for some EAA.. BUT that said? there is no dithering or if my focus creeps as all ? No refocus. And no Flip.. So basically its for quick 15-20 Minute stacks. But for what it is? It's fantastic!
@@CuivTheLazyGeekIt really is Isn't it.. some nights that's all I do for hours is just live observe and ill Live stack target after target all night.. And some of the stacks? are pretty Good I must admit. Won't win an APOD but better than expected.
Hi, I do EAA (electronically assisted astronomy) using SharpCap Pro and an Alt Az mount. With SharpCap I can do live stacking of deep sky objects because this software corrects the field rotation, since the mount is Alt Az. Asiair also fixes field rotation in its live stacking in Alt Az? Thank you!!!
This will be fantastic for outreach once my club resumes monthly parties. It's the only way my 102 refractor can compete with the other members' 16-25 inch dobsonian light buckets!
Thanks for the great video, Cuiv. I have not tried the built-in calibration frames in the ASIAir yet, and it was helpful to see you use it. BTW, I use the live mode for "real" astrophotography all the time--I just shoot calibration frames separately afterward. It's a great way to get the benefits of both EAA and "real" AP.
this is actually a good idea, I mean you do keep the same individual frames which you can properly stack and also have something interesting to look at while shooting.
@@CuivTheLazyGeek Great question, but I cannot answer with certainty. I am working without guiding--I am even using an Alt-Az mount! From a friend's experience, I believe that EAF and guiding (including dither) work, but I do not know about Meridian flip and suspect you are right about that.
This is a list of my hardware: Explore Scientific ED102 Essential Series Air-Spaced Triplet APO Refractor (ES-ED10207-02) , 2" Hotech field flattener, ASIair Pro, EAF, ASI294MC Pro. I have been using this setup for the last month with absolutely no problems. Last night I went out and setup to run but I could not get the Plate Solving to work. Is there some way to find out which update is running? (I don't remember if I ran the lastest update) There has been NO hardware changes, so I figure it's a software. Any ideas or solution?
Another great Video and actually got me interested in an ASIAIR as all I do is EAA, live broadcasts, but means I will have to get an EAF as it will not recognize my Moonlite focusers!! Might do same setup with SharpStar 61 on a AZ-EQ6 mount? Thanks Always enjoy your videos!
Augh, moonlite to EAF is quite a step down! I mean it works, but not the best thing ever :D There's another alternative, which is Stellarmate and which should work with the Moonlite :) Tomorrow's video has some stuff on Stellarmate!
You are mostly correct - with recent cooled CMOS cameras, a one second dark can closely approximate both a bias frame and a dark flat. I was kind of hoping those 1s bias/dark flat frames would be applied to the flats
Thanks for this very useful overview of live stacking using ASI AIR. I’m hooked on EAA as I’m too impatient for proper Astrophotography and like to capture several targets each night. I’ve been using SharpCap Pro for live stacking but might buy an ASIAIR to try out. I’ve been using just dark frames but need to add flat and bias frames for better results. What are you using for the light box?
I have the ASiAir Pro and like how ZWO upgrades the app software with new features and not just on the new Plus model. Curious if a filter wheel with an opaque filter could act as a lens cap and produce useful Darks and Bias frames? Flats, are of course hard to automate, but you can always use recent Flats, if the image train hasn't been altered.
I think it could work in dark areas - in Tokyo I fear there would be too much light leakage. I've never tried though! As for flats, flat panels that act as dust shields and can be controlled by ASCOM actually exist!
Cuiv, The Lazy Geek I'm still using a DSLR but shopping for a cooled astro camera. Do they use a shutter? Or just control exposure electronically? Automating the whole process would be great but not changing the battery every 3 hours and improved performance are the main advantages for me.
One wonders whether astrophotography has now become more art than science, whereby image quality trumps the nature of what it is we are actually imaging, and why the subject looks the way it does.
Nice bit of kit! Hey Cuiv, I recall you mentioned a way to use a MS Studio 1080p webcam passed the 1 sec exposure/driver limits. For the life of me I can't find it... or I'm dreaming! Ty
@@CuivTheLazyGeek Lol, it MAY not have been from you... I watch a lot of tech stuff... my bad. Ty for replying and I really enjoy your content. At least it works pretty well except for the problems we all have with weather and Lunacy!
@@CuivTheLazyGeek I get a readout on the ASIAIR of around 30,000 at 55ms. Isn't that about right? (maybe a little high) I did a test at 1 second and it was 65514, I know that's wrong. Thoughts?
@@Dennis-tf2cs Yep, that's fine - it's just that the 294MC can be a bit inconsistent in sub-1 second exposures (as I've heard and experienced). Which would mean you'd need to lower the panel luminosity, or add white t-shirt layers or something between scope and panel.
So you were doing 30s Un-Guided Exposures in your Video example ? "IF" an Un-Guided Image started to drift over time , can you Program a new Plate Solve/re-center after a certain number of Exposures ? Let's say 20 Exposures , plate Solve and re-center and then take another 20 Exposures etc.,etc . This would be very nice ./SRK
If you have drift due to improper polar alignment the image will stay clear as the ASIair has a built-in star alignment algorithm. You will notice that as each stack is added there will be black edges developing that would normally be cropped out when processing a saved image. You can also pause live stack and go back to preview to realign using the arrows, or touching the screen as shown by Cuiv. Live stack is awesome if you have a crowd, or as Cuiv said, if you just want to see what's there.
I told you you would like the live stack. Never hurts. And you get to see. Just remember you have to save the live stack before you stop and change targets. Bottom right arrow. It saves it2 way. JPEG and fit.
@@CuivTheLazyGeek I thought you had a wedge and converted it to a German. I watch all your videos may have gotten a few mixed up. Lol. I plan on using my 72mm as a guide scope with the C 8 when I ever get it. I hope our az eq5 can track 300 sec with that 20lb load.
@@anthonygraham6449 I do! But it adds weight and setup complexity. A true eVscope competitor that can be used by anyone should not need to be polar aligned, etc.
Great feature on the ASI air. I have a Meade cooled deep space cam, and a Meade guide cam. Do you know of any product , like the asi air that, allows other cameras to be used?
Bonjour Cuiv, super de te voir présenter un peu de "visuel assisté" (comme on dit en français)... Juste une petite question qui n'a rien à voir : j'ai vu que tu gardais ton matériel sous une bâche plastifiée, sur ton balcon. Tu le fais toute l'année ? Cela ne craint pas pour le matériel ? Je suis en train de vouloir laisser aussi mon matériel en station, dehors, toute l'année, et je me demande comment le protéger... En tous cas, un grand merci pour tes vidéos et ton anglais que je peux comprendre facilement (l'avantage d'un "accent" en commun ;-) Je fais de l'astro en banlieue parisienne et ton ciel est pire que le mien (c'est rare !!), donc tu es mon exemple pour faire de belles images d'astronomie-urbaine !! 😃
Il y aura encore du visuel assisté dans la vidéo de demain :-) alors, oui, je laisse le matos sous cette bâche (Telegizmo 365 et desiccant) toute l'année. Ça va faire mourir l'équipement plus vite, mais je l'aurais utilisé plus. C'est donc un compromis!
I tried last night .the flats,darks,bias went well but when it came to the lights/stacking the counter that tells me how many frames were stacked stayed at 0. Same with ignored etc. both stayed at 0. Anyone know what went wrong?
Great video ! I was wondering if there is a way to do autofocus with a dslr and lens which has a focuser inside the lens ? I tried in NINA but it is expecting an external focuser, do you think a driver could be developped to achieve it ?
A non-related to the topic of this video question. How did you connect ZWO non-mini camera to QHY mini guide scope? I want to do the same, but have no idea what kind of adapter to look for.
So the 178MM came with a small tiny all sky lens - that tiny lens actually has a C-mount (same as the QHY mini guide scope), so just remove the lens itself, keeping the T to C adapter that comes with the camera , and it just ifts!
Look forward to watching this in a bit. Here to ask a question for those with an air. How do you take flats with the air? Mine auto exposes but has been causing me issues, it exposes for over the halfway mark in the histogram so 2/3rds. I have a dual narrowband but it's leaving a red mark with green in it, I can see dust spots which is great but I don't know if my flats are working.
Hi, not sure this will help but I found that the ps align pro app on my iPad has a useful backlight feature. I crank it down half way and put the iPad on the scope. So it makes the asair auto flat feature correctly expose as opposed to 100% brightness where it would usually overexpose… and the autoflat works perfect for me!
@@CuivTheLazyGeek I'm surprised it doesn't work as well as I thought it would. I recently upgraded to my first dedicated camera, the 533MC Pro from a DSLR. With my DSLR I was able to use the histogram and then the many small increments to get that 1/3rd histogram exposure.
Reported spam reply. ASIair is awesome if it's features are what you want. If that's the case, you won't be disappointed with it. That being said, there are features advanced astrophotographers are likely to want, features that are absent in the ASIair.
Thanks for reporting spam replies! I see a lot recently. Yep, you're spot on with the summary on the ASIAIR - I published a wishlist for it a few days ago :)
1) Limited to ZWO cameras 2) Not about to discard all my other gear and go the ZWO route 3) A hobby with a limitless appetite for more money expenditure.....
